[Federal Register: December 21, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 246)]
[Notices]
[Page 66249-66253]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21de01-149]
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Part VI
Department of Education
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Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), Cognition and
Student Learning (CASL) Research Grant Program; Notice
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[CFDA No. 84.305H]
Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI), Cognition
and Student Learning (CASL) Research Grant Program
ACTION: Notice inviting applications for new awards for fiscal year
(FY) 2002.
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Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to improve
student learning by supporting a new program of research that brings
recent advances in cognitive science and neuroscience to bear on
significant educational problems. The overarching goal of this program
of research is to establish a scientific foundation for educational
practice by supporting research on key processes of attention, memory,
and reasoning that are essential for learning and that are likely to
produce substantial gains in academic achievement.
Eligible Applicants: Public and private agencies, institutions, and
organizations, including for-profit and non-profit organizations;
institutions of higher education; State and local educational agencies;
and regional educational laboratories.
Deadline for Receipt of Letter of Intent: February 5, 2002.
A Letter of Intent is optional, but encouraged, for each
application. The Letter of Intent is for OERI planning purposes and
will not be used in the evaluation of the application.
Applications Available: December 21, 2001.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: April 15, 2002.
Estimated Available Funds: Up to $3,000,000 for the first year of
this program.
The estimated amount of funds available for new awards is based on
the Administration's request for this program for FY 2002. The actual
level of funding, if any, depends on final congressional action.
However, we are inviting applications to allow enough time to complete
the grant process if Congress appropriates funds for this program.
Estimated Range of Awards: $75,000 to $500,000.
Estimated Size of Awards: The size of the awards will be
commensurate with the nature and scope of the work proposed.
Estimated Number of Awards: 10.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 36 months.
Page Limits: The application must include the following sections:
title page form (ED 424), one-page abstract, research narrative,
literature cited, curriculum vitae for principal investigators(s) and
other key personnel, budget summary form (ED 524) with budget
narrative, appendix, and statement of equitable access (GEPA 427). The
research narrative is where you, the applicant, address the selection
criteria that reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must
limit the research narrative (text plus all figures, charts, tables,
and diagrams) to the equivalent of 25 pages and the appendix to 20
pages, using the following standards:
A ``page'' is 8.5" x 11", on one side only, with 1"
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch)
all text in the research narrative, including titles, headings,
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
The page limit does not apply to the title page form, the one-page
abstract, the budget summary form and narrative budget justification,
the curriculum vitae, literature cited, or the assurances and
certifications. Our reviewers will not read any pages of your
application that--
Exceed the page limit if you apply these standards; or
Exceed the equivalent of the page limit if you apply other
standards.
We have found that reviewers are able to conduct the highest
quality review when applications are concise and easy to read, with
pages consecutively numbered.
Applicable Statute and Regulations: (a) 20 U.S.C. 6031; (b) The
Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34
CFR parts 74, 75 (except as limited in 34 CFR 700.5), 76, 77, 80, 81,
82, 85, 86 (part 86 applies only to Institutions of Higher Education),
97, 98, and 99; and (c) The regulations in 34 CFR part 700.
Selection Criteria: The Secretary selects the following selection
criteria in 34 CFR 700.30(e) to evaluate applications for new grants
under this competition. The criteria below will receive the following
percentage weights.
(a) National Significance (.2)
(b) Quality of the Project Design (.5)
(c) Quality and Potential Contributions of Personnel (.2)
(d) Adequacy of Resources (.1)
Strong applications for CASL grants clearly address each of the
applicable selection criteria. They make a well-reasoned and compelling
case for the national significance of the problems or issues that will
be the subject of the proposed research, and present a research design
that is complete, clearly delineated, and incorporates sound research
methods. In addition, the personnel descriptions included in strong
applications make it apparent that the project director, principal
investigator, and other key personnel possess training and experience
commensurate with their duties.
Collaboration: We encourage collaboration in the conduct of
research. For example, major research universities and institutions may
collaborate with historically underrepresented institutions, such as
Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving
Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and Universities.
Pre-Application Meeting: We will hold a pre-application meeting on
February 19, 2002 to discuss the funding priority. You are invited to
participate. You will receive technical assistance and information
about the funding priority. Participants are also encouraged to use
this meeting to engage in substantive discussion about prior empirical
research and the nature of high quality research in this new area. The
meeting will be held at the U.S. Department of Education, Office of
Educational Research and Improvement, 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW., room
101, Washington, DC, between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. A summary of the meeting
will be posted on the Internet at: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OERI
Assistance to Individuals With Disabilities at the Meeting
The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities. If
you will need an auxiliary aid or service to participate in the meeting
(e.g., interpreting service, assistive listening device, or materials
in an alternate format), notify the contact person listed under FOR
APPLICATIONS AND FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT at least two weeks before
the scheduled meeting date. Although we will attempt to meet a request
we receive after that date, we may not be able to make available the
requested auxiliary aid or service because of insufficient time to
arrange it.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Cognitive science and neuroscience have been
dynamic areas of research over the past fifteen years, producing
breakthroughs in our basic understanding of the brain and behavior.
Although this research has identified key processes of
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attention, memory, and reasoning that are essential for learning, it
has yet to be systematically applied to significant educational
problems. Therefore, OERI is interested in funding research that builds
on these advances and meaningfully connects them to profound and
pervasive problems in learning or academic achievement. In this
competition, we focus on cognitive psychology rather than linguistics,
artificial intelligence, or other areas of cognitive science. We seek
research proposals on both basic information processing (problems in
encoding, processing information in working memory, storage, and
retrieval of knowledge) and higher order cognition (problems in
executive function and monitoring, inferential and critical thinking,
and verbal and quantitative reasoning). Ranging from basic to higher
order cognition, the following topics are illustrative foci for
research:
Attention: Research has identified complex attentional mechanisms
at the neural and behavioral level that govern information encoding.
Little is known, however, about the encoding of information presented
to students, notably, how much information is encoded, how attentional
mechanisms are implicated in failures to encode, and the degree to
which encoding failure explains academic failure, particularly among
students who would not be characterized as having attention deficit
disorder. Clearly, the effectiveness of teaching and learning
interventions depend on whether students process those interventions,
and it may well be that effectiveness can be improved by increasing the
quality and degree of student attention. Furthermore, attentional and
related information-processing systems undergo significant development
with age and experience, and such development interacts with task and
contextual variables to affect cognitive performance. Research is
needed that bridges the gap between detailed, rigorous models of
attention (and its development) and successful academic performance.
Memory: Recent research suggests that memory can be conceived of as
a property of brain systems and as an outcome of the brain's
processing, rather than as a distinct item stored in a specific brain
location. Thus, memory is both a part and a product of information-
processing activities that are crucial for learning. For example, in
working memory, presented information is both stored and operated on,
as when students add a series of numbers in their head (i.e., mental
arithmetic). Indeed, thinking, problem solving, comprehension,
judgment, and long-term retention are related to operations in working
memory; all but the simplest tasks also recruit executive control in
managing working memory. Although research has related working memory
to individual differences in test performance, few process analyses
have been done to either isolate sources of difficulties in school-
related tasks or to design process-based interventions to reduce those
difficulties. Most recently, research on memory has focused on multiple
memory systems and processes in long-term memory, which would be tapped
to different degrees in different academic tasks. Although theorists
differ about the exact nature of these multiple memories, research has
demonstrated that learners harbor memories for presented material that
are elicited with varying success in different testing environments.
Thus, research might profitably focus on how to improve retrieval of
these implicit memories for learned material, how memory systems differ
in their support for reasoning and problem solving, and how
representations in memory can more accurately reflect what has been
taught.
Reasoning: Although the seeds of reasoning competence appear to be
planted early in development, logical and other forms of reasoning
continue to develop significantly into late adolescence. Rudimentary
reasoning is required for students to comprehend textbooks, follow
class lectures and discussions, and to write and think effectively on
their own. Research has distinguished different kinds of reasoning
errors in laboratory tasks, which can be ameliorated in different ways.
Furthermore, research has shown that students are not trapped in
cognitive stages until they are ``ready to learn,'' but, rather, they
can learn to improve their reasoning at each stage of development.
Research is needed that links this work on reasoning development and
performance to the amelioration of reasoning problems in important
academic contexts, such as high-stakes testing. Students who fail to
master these higher-order reasoning skills are unlikely to compete
effectively in a fast-moving economy in which new learning and problem
solving are routinely required.
Applicants must focus on research that has the potential to produce
substantial gains in academic achievement. Dependent variables may
include: measures of cognitive processes, such as conceptual
understanding; performance on problems from textbooks, homework
exercises, and other ordinarily and widely assigned school tasks; items
such as those customarily given on standardized tests (e.g., SATs,
NAEP); and other measures of learning or cognition that are
demonstrably relevant to academic achievement.
Priority
This competition focuses on projects designed to meet the following
absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3) we consider only
applications that meet the priority.
Absolute Priority
Despite their relevance to learning, recent advances in cognitive
science and neuroscience have remained virtually untapped in education.
This program of research on Cognition and Student Learning seeks to
establish a scientific foundation for educational practice by building
on these theoretical and empirical advances and applying them to
significant problems in learning or academic achievement. Specifically,
proposals are solicited that address either 1 or 2 below.
1. Mechanisms of basic information processing, such as the
following, and their relation to significant problems in learning or
academic achievement.
a. Attention.
b. Working memory.
c. Learning processes: Acquisition and retention.
d. Storage in and retrieval from long-term memory.
e. Interference and inhibition.
2. Mechanisms of higher order cognition, such as the following, and
their relation to significant problems in learning or academic
achievement.
a. Executive function and monitoring.
b. Metamemory/memory strategies.
c. Meaning extraction (literal and figurative) for words,
sentences, discourse, and complex events.
d. Inference and critical thinking: derivation of semantic,
logical, and pragmatic inferences, situation models, and other mental
representations.
e. Similarity, categorization, and analogical reasoning.
f. Non-verbal reasoning (e.g., spatial, scientific, quantitative
reasoning).
g. Conceptual development (e.g., biology, music, calculus).
h. Judgment and decision-making.
Proposed research must be motivated by a specific conceptual
framework and relevant prior empirical evidence, both of which must be
clearly articulated. The research must have the potential to advance
fundamental knowledge that bears on solving important problems in
learning or academic achievement. The proposal must indicate method and
why the approach taken optimally addresses the research question. Any
approach
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must incorporate a valid process that allows for generalization beyond
the study participants. Proposals must indicate which of the following
approaches is to be used:
1. Experiment (control group; randomized assignment--both
required).
2. Quasi-experiment (comparison group, stratified random
assignment, groups comparable at pretest, statistical adjustment for
comparability).
3. Correlational study (simple, multiple/logistic regression,
structural equation modeling, hierarchical linear modeling).
4. Other quantitative (e.g., simulation).
5. Descriptive study using qualitative techniques (e.g.,
ethnographic methods; focus groups; classroom observations; case
studies; single subject designs).
The design of studies should be clear: Independent and dependent,
or predictor and criterion, variables should be distinguished. Proposed
research is expected to employ the most sophisticated level of design
and analysis that is appropriate to the research question. For research
questions that cannot be answered using a randomized assignment
experimental design, the proposal should spell out the reasons why such
a design is not applicable and why it would not represent a superior
approach (compared to the selected design).
Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking
Under the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 553) the
Department generally offers interested parties the opportunity to
comment on proposed regulations. However, in order to make timely grant
awards in FY 2002, the Secretary has decided to issue this application
notice without first publishing a proposed priority for public comment.
These regulations will apply to the FY 2002 grant competition only. The
Secretary takes this action under section 437(d)(1) of the General
Education Provisions Act.
OERI is conducting this grant competition under the national
research institutes authority for the purpose of funding projects that
will establish a new stream of research bridging basic cognitive
science and educational application. Cognitive science, including
studies of learning, memory, decision making, language acquisition,
higher order thinking skills, as well as the brain mechanisms
underlying these abilities, has shown explosive growth in the last 25
years. Indeed, along with genomic science, many believe that the
cognitive and brain sciences have generated the greatest scientific
progress of the late 20th century. Basic research within the
disciplines of psychology, linguistics, and neuroscience has generated
new and important fundamental knowledge on how people learn. However,
most of this research has been conducted in laboratory settings, with
samples of convenience, and with tasks that are artificial.
Translations of this research into educational practice have either not
occurred or have not gotten further than abstract statements of
principles.
The new program of research sponsored by OERI is intended to move
research in the cognitive and brain sciences into schools, expanding
the knowledge base to school settings, and to develop new programs and
interventions that take advantage of that knowledge base.
Thus for the first time OERI is soliciting applications that will
address the lack of substantial interplay between the applied problems
of schools and learners, and the cognitive and brain sciences.
In a separate Federal Register notice to be published in the near
future, the Assistant Secretary will ask for public comment on this
priority for the purpose of designing and conducting future grant
competitions for this research.
Pilot Project for Electronic Submission of Applications
In FY 2002, the U.S. Department of Education is continuing to
expand its pilot project of electronic submission of applications to
include additional formula grant programs and additional discretionary
grant competitions. The Cognition and Student Learning Research Grant
Program (CFDA 84.305H) is one of the programs included in the pilot
project. If you are an applicant under the CASL program, you may submit
your application to us in either electronic or paper format.
The pilot project involves the use of the Electronic Grant
Application System (e-APPLICATION, formerly e-GAPS) portion of the
Grant Administration and Payment System (GAPS). We request your
participation in this pilot project. We shall continue to evaluate its
success and solicit suggestions for improvement.
If you participate in this e-APPLICATION pilot, please note the
following:
Your participation is voluntary.
You will not receive any additional point value or penalty
because you submit a grant application in electronic or paper format.
You can submit all documents electronically, including the
Application for Federal Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information--Non-
Construction Programs (ED 524), and all necessary assurances and
certifications.
Within three working days of submitting your electronic
application, fax a signed copy of the Application for Federal
Assistance (ED 424) to the Application Control Center after following
these steps:
1. Print ED 424 from the e-APPLICATION system.
2. Make sure that the institution's Authorizing Representative
signs this form.
3. Before faxing this form, submit your electronic application via
the e-APPLICATION system. You will receive an automatic
acknowledgement, which will include a PR/Award number (an identifying
number unique to your application).
4. Place the PR/Award number in the upper right hand corner of ED
424.
5. Fax ED 424 to the Application Control Center at (202) 260-1349.
We may request that you give us original signatures on all other
forms at a later date.
You may access the electronic grant application for the CASL
Program at: http://e-grants.ed.gov.
Due to software upgrades, it is anticipated that the e-Application
software will be unavailable for several days in mid-January. The
tentative dates for this system down time are January 11-21, 2002.
Please check this site for future updates on system availability.
We have included additional information about the e-APPLICATION
pilot project (see Parity Guidelines between Paper and Electronic
Applications) in the application package.
FOR APPLICATIONS AND FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Valerie Reyna, Office
of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education,
555 New Jersey Avenue, room 600, Washington, DC 20208. Telephone: (202)
219-1385 or via Internet: Valerie.Reyna@ed.gov.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer
diskette) on request to the program contact person listed under FOR
APPLICATIONS AND FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format by contacting Valerie Reyna. However,
the
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Department is not able to reproduce in an alternative format the
standard forms included in the application package.
Electronic Access to This Document
You may view this document, as well as all other Department of
Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe
Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site:
http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://
www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 6031.
Dated: December 18, 2001.
Grover J. Whitehurst,
Assistant Secretary for Educational, Research and Improvement.
[FR Doc. 01-31503 Filed 12-20-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-U